Purple Hibiscus
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
, KEY:
Chapter 1: Pg 5-16 Kam = Kambili
FB = Father Benedict
- Things started to fall apart because Jaja didn’t go to communion FA = Father Amadi
- The palm fronds represent victory and the broken figurines personify Mama Ppl = People
- Oblate: person serving in a church or monastery – wear long, grey robes Coz = Because
Characters
- Papa helps distribute the ash every year (On Ash Wednesday)
- Papa’s line moved the slowest because he pressed hard on each forehead to make a perfect cross with his
ash-covered thumb
- He meaningfully enunciated every word of “dust and unto dust you shall return”
- Most people didn’t kneel to receive communion at the marble alter, but Papa did
- Father Benedict = parish priest who has been at St Agnes church for 7 years but people still say that he is new
- FB (^) changed things in the parish and insisted that the Credo and kyrie be recited only in Latin; Igbo was not
acceptable
- “Brother Eugene” = Papa
- Papa would tell FB when people missed communion 2 Sunday’s in a row
- This is what made Papa angry; Jaja missed it twice
- Jaja said that the priest keeps touching his mouth and that it nauseates him
- Jaja did not look at Kambili because he knew that her eyes would beg him to shut his mouth
- “Missal” a heavy book that Papa threw at Jaja, which broke the figurines on the etagere (piece of furniture with
open shelves for displaying ornaments)
- The missal contained the readings for all 3 cycles of the church year
- “Nne, ngwa” = a term of endearment such as ‘dear’ or ‘sweetie’ and “ngwa” means ‘come on’ / ‘hurry up’
- Normally Papa would tell Jaja and Kambili to take a sip of his tea because “you shared the little things you
loved with the people you loved”, but this time he didn’t ask them to take a sip
- The tea was always too hot and it burned Kambili’s tongue, so did the peppery supper, but it didn’t matter
because Kam knew it burned Papa’s love into her
- Papa used to say to them “Have a love sip”; Jaja would sip first and then Kam would take a sip
- Kam walked to her room, but didn’t understand why everyone else was acting like everything was normal; as if
Jaja didn’t just speak back to Papa, and as if Papa didn’t just break the figurines (ballet figurines)
- Normally Mama would come to Kam’s room to do her hair but today she only came up to tell Kam that lunch
was ready, and said that she would do Kam’s hair after lunch
- The figurines clearly meant something to Mama because she would spent at least a quarter of an hour on each
ballet-dancing figurine
- She polished them with a kitchen towel that had been soaked in soapy water
- Kam knew that Mama was downstairs polishing the figurines because she heard the dining room door open,
and Kam would go downstairs to see her mom polishing them
- It’s revealed that 2 weeks ago Mama had a swollen eye that was still the black-purple colour of an overripe avo
- “Ke Kwanu” = Igbo for ‘how are you?’
- Also out of the ordinary (usual) = Jaja would normally go to his room to read before lunch, but today he had
been in the kitchen the whole time, with Mama and Sisi
- Jaja = 17 y/o
- By the time lunch arrived, Papa prayed for 20 minutes where he asked God to bless the food, after which, there
was complete silence
- Kam wished that people would speak to take the attention off Jaja’s shaking hands (his “nervous movements”)
- Papa calls Sisi “that girl”
- Mama asked Sisi to bring the cashew juice to the table
- Papa’s factories made: wafers, cream biscuits, bottled juice and banana chips
- Kam wanted to seem eager to taste it and compliment it to take Papa’s mind off of punishing Jaja
,- Kam and Mama both said that it tasted good, but Jaja said nothing
- Kam wanted Jaja to contribute and compliment Papa’s new product, but he said nothing
- We learn that the family always said something (good) when an employee from one of Papa’s factories brought
a product home for them to sample
- Kam knew that Mama was nervous because: 1) The cashew juice wasn’t that good and 2) Her voice was lower
than usual (*REASONS*)
- Papa questioned Jaja as to why he hadn’t said anything (“Have you no words in your mouth?”)
- Papa asked this question in Igbo (a bad sign because he hardly spoke it and didn’t want Kam and Jaja to speak it
in public; he said they should sound civilised and only speak English)
- Aunty Ifeoma = Papa’s sister. Lives in Nsukka. Kam and Jaja’s aunt. Has 3 kids
- Jaja told Papa that he had nothing to say, got up, thanked the Lord, Papa and Mama for the meal and was
leaving the table
- What would normally happen is Papa would say a prayer after each meal
- Papa got up, but slumped back into his seat and said/did nothing
- Kam poured her drink down her throat, (nervous, over-flowing emotions) and began choking
- Mama and Papa rushed over to her and helped her stop coughing
- That evening, Kam stayed in her room and didn’t eat dinner with the fam because she developed a cough
- Papa came into her room and asked if she wanted anything, but she said no because Mama was making her
some “ofe nsala” (white soup made out of a whole catfish)
- Kam asked where Jaja was and Mama said that he was in his room and didn’t come down for dinner
- When Kam asked Mama if she is going to replace the broken figurines, Mama said no
- “Maybe Mama had realized that she would not need the figurines anymore; that when Papa threw the missal
at Jaja, it was not just the figurines that came tumbling down, it was everything.”
, Chapter 2: 19-26
- Narration now jumps months back in time to describe the events leading up to Palm Sunday
- Kam and Jaja washed their school uniforms while Sisi washed all of their other clothes
- They would first soak tiny sections of fabric in the foamy water to check if the colours would run as they
wanted to spend every minute of the half hour that Papa allocated to uniform washing (Papa’s schedule)
- Mama brought Kam’s clothes to her room from the washing line outside because it was going to drizzle
- She revealed that she was pregnant and went to see her doctor in Park Lane the day before
- She will have the baby in October
- “Thanks be to God” is what Papa expected Kam and Jaja to say when good things happened
- We learn that Mama had miscarriages after Kam was born and that the villagers started to whisper
- Last miscarriage = 6 years ago
- The members of their “umunna” (extended fam) told Papa to have children with someone else, but he stuck
with his family
- Kam reveals that Mama doesn’t usually say so much at once: “She spoke the way a bird eats, in small amounts”
- Mama ‘compares’ Papa to Mr Ezendu (his wife had many sons, took over their home and drove him out)
- Mama says she is glad that Papa didn’t leave them
- Kam feels that her Mama comparing him to other men “soils” him
- “The Sisters” = members of “ Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal” prayer group
- “Sister Beatrice” = Mama. (“Beatrice” is Mama’s name)
- When Papa was not home, Jaja would go into Kam’s room before changing, but if Papa was home, he would go
to his own room first
- Jaja’s school = St. Nicholas. Fun Fact: Jaja was voted neatest junior boy last year
- “Siesta” = a short nap taken in the early afternoon
- Kevin = the family’s personal driver
- Before, Kevin would pick up Kam from Daughters of the Immaculate Heart, and then drive to fetch Jaja at St.
Nicholas, and then her and Jaja would have lunch together when they got home
- Now, because Jaja is in a new gifted student program at St. Nicholas, he attends after-school lessons, so they
can’t have lunch together
- Even though there is a ‘menu’ on the kitchen wall that Mama changes twice a month, Jaja still asks Kam what
she had for lunch
- Maybe they ask each other questions to which they have an answer so that they don’t ask each other
questions whose answers they don’t want to know
- When Kam tells Jaja that she knows about Mama being pregnant, Jaja says: “We will take care of the baby; we
will protect him.”
- Kam knew that Jaja meant protection from Papa
- Jaja feels that Mama is going to have a baby boy
- Kam reveals that Papa drew up hers and Jaja’s schedules and wonders if he will do the same for the new baby
and also wonders when he will do it (right after the baby is born or when the baby is a toddler?)
- She reveals that Papa likes order
- One Saturday, when Papa and Jaja were playing chess, Papa heard a general with a strong Hause accent come
on the radio and announce that there had been a coup and that they had a new government
- Papa immediately called Ade Coker (the editor of Papa’s newspaper, the Standard)
- We learn that The Standard had written many stories about the cabinet ministers who stashed money in
foreign bank accounts, money meant for paying teachers’ salaries and building roads
- At the end of this chapter, we see that Kam is thirsty for Papa’s proudness of her – when Jaja says something
that Papa is happy with / proud of, Kam wishes that she was the one who said it
- When she finally does say something that she knows he would like, he reaches out to hold her hand
- She describes the feeling as though her mouth were “full of melting sugar”
- We see here that she often says things she knows her father would like to hear
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
, KEY:
Chapter 1: Pg 5-16 Kam = Kambili
FB = Father Benedict
- Things started to fall apart because Jaja didn’t go to communion FA = Father Amadi
- The palm fronds represent victory and the broken figurines personify Mama Ppl = People
- Oblate: person serving in a church or monastery – wear long, grey robes Coz = Because
Characters
- Papa helps distribute the ash every year (On Ash Wednesday)
- Papa’s line moved the slowest because he pressed hard on each forehead to make a perfect cross with his
ash-covered thumb
- He meaningfully enunciated every word of “dust and unto dust you shall return”
- Most people didn’t kneel to receive communion at the marble alter, but Papa did
- Father Benedict = parish priest who has been at St Agnes church for 7 years but people still say that he is new
- FB (^) changed things in the parish and insisted that the Credo and kyrie be recited only in Latin; Igbo was not
acceptable
- “Brother Eugene” = Papa
- Papa would tell FB when people missed communion 2 Sunday’s in a row
- This is what made Papa angry; Jaja missed it twice
- Jaja said that the priest keeps touching his mouth and that it nauseates him
- Jaja did not look at Kambili because he knew that her eyes would beg him to shut his mouth
- “Missal” a heavy book that Papa threw at Jaja, which broke the figurines on the etagere (piece of furniture with
open shelves for displaying ornaments)
- The missal contained the readings for all 3 cycles of the church year
- “Nne, ngwa” = a term of endearment such as ‘dear’ or ‘sweetie’ and “ngwa” means ‘come on’ / ‘hurry up’
- Normally Papa would tell Jaja and Kambili to take a sip of his tea because “you shared the little things you
loved with the people you loved”, but this time he didn’t ask them to take a sip
- The tea was always too hot and it burned Kambili’s tongue, so did the peppery supper, but it didn’t matter
because Kam knew it burned Papa’s love into her
- Papa used to say to them “Have a love sip”; Jaja would sip first and then Kam would take a sip
- Kam walked to her room, but didn’t understand why everyone else was acting like everything was normal; as if
Jaja didn’t just speak back to Papa, and as if Papa didn’t just break the figurines (ballet figurines)
- Normally Mama would come to Kam’s room to do her hair but today she only came up to tell Kam that lunch
was ready, and said that she would do Kam’s hair after lunch
- The figurines clearly meant something to Mama because she would spent at least a quarter of an hour on each
ballet-dancing figurine
- She polished them with a kitchen towel that had been soaked in soapy water
- Kam knew that Mama was downstairs polishing the figurines because she heard the dining room door open,
and Kam would go downstairs to see her mom polishing them
- It’s revealed that 2 weeks ago Mama had a swollen eye that was still the black-purple colour of an overripe avo
- “Ke Kwanu” = Igbo for ‘how are you?’
- Also out of the ordinary (usual) = Jaja would normally go to his room to read before lunch, but today he had
been in the kitchen the whole time, with Mama and Sisi
- Jaja = 17 y/o
- By the time lunch arrived, Papa prayed for 20 minutes where he asked God to bless the food, after which, there
was complete silence
- Kam wished that people would speak to take the attention off Jaja’s shaking hands (his “nervous movements”)
- Papa calls Sisi “that girl”
- Mama asked Sisi to bring the cashew juice to the table
- Papa’s factories made: wafers, cream biscuits, bottled juice and banana chips
- Kam wanted to seem eager to taste it and compliment it to take Papa’s mind off of punishing Jaja
,- Kam and Mama both said that it tasted good, but Jaja said nothing
- Kam wanted Jaja to contribute and compliment Papa’s new product, but he said nothing
- We learn that the family always said something (good) when an employee from one of Papa’s factories brought
a product home for them to sample
- Kam knew that Mama was nervous because: 1) The cashew juice wasn’t that good and 2) Her voice was lower
than usual (*REASONS*)
- Papa questioned Jaja as to why he hadn’t said anything (“Have you no words in your mouth?”)
- Papa asked this question in Igbo (a bad sign because he hardly spoke it and didn’t want Kam and Jaja to speak it
in public; he said they should sound civilised and only speak English)
- Aunty Ifeoma = Papa’s sister. Lives in Nsukka. Kam and Jaja’s aunt. Has 3 kids
- Jaja told Papa that he had nothing to say, got up, thanked the Lord, Papa and Mama for the meal and was
leaving the table
- What would normally happen is Papa would say a prayer after each meal
- Papa got up, but slumped back into his seat and said/did nothing
- Kam poured her drink down her throat, (nervous, over-flowing emotions) and began choking
- Mama and Papa rushed over to her and helped her stop coughing
- That evening, Kam stayed in her room and didn’t eat dinner with the fam because she developed a cough
- Papa came into her room and asked if she wanted anything, but she said no because Mama was making her
some “ofe nsala” (white soup made out of a whole catfish)
- Kam asked where Jaja was and Mama said that he was in his room and didn’t come down for dinner
- When Kam asked Mama if she is going to replace the broken figurines, Mama said no
- “Maybe Mama had realized that she would not need the figurines anymore; that when Papa threw the missal
at Jaja, it was not just the figurines that came tumbling down, it was everything.”
, Chapter 2: 19-26
- Narration now jumps months back in time to describe the events leading up to Palm Sunday
- Kam and Jaja washed their school uniforms while Sisi washed all of their other clothes
- They would first soak tiny sections of fabric in the foamy water to check if the colours would run as they
wanted to spend every minute of the half hour that Papa allocated to uniform washing (Papa’s schedule)
- Mama brought Kam’s clothes to her room from the washing line outside because it was going to drizzle
- She revealed that she was pregnant and went to see her doctor in Park Lane the day before
- She will have the baby in October
- “Thanks be to God” is what Papa expected Kam and Jaja to say when good things happened
- We learn that Mama had miscarriages after Kam was born and that the villagers started to whisper
- Last miscarriage = 6 years ago
- The members of their “umunna” (extended fam) told Papa to have children with someone else, but he stuck
with his family
- Kam reveals that Mama doesn’t usually say so much at once: “She spoke the way a bird eats, in small amounts”
- Mama ‘compares’ Papa to Mr Ezendu (his wife had many sons, took over their home and drove him out)
- Mama says she is glad that Papa didn’t leave them
- Kam feels that her Mama comparing him to other men “soils” him
- “The Sisters” = members of “ Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal” prayer group
- “Sister Beatrice” = Mama. (“Beatrice” is Mama’s name)
- When Papa was not home, Jaja would go into Kam’s room before changing, but if Papa was home, he would go
to his own room first
- Jaja’s school = St. Nicholas. Fun Fact: Jaja was voted neatest junior boy last year
- “Siesta” = a short nap taken in the early afternoon
- Kevin = the family’s personal driver
- Before, Kevin would pick up Kam from Daughters of the Immaculate Heart, and then drive to fetch Jaja at St.
Nicholas, and then her and Jaja would have lunch together when they got home
- Now, because Jaja is in a new gifted student program at St. Nicholas, he attends after-school lessons, so they
can’t have lunch together
- Even though there is a ‘menu’ on the kitchen wall that Mama changes twice a month, Jaja still asks Kam what
she had for lunch
- Maybe they ask each other questions to which they have an answer so that they don’t ask each other
questions whose answers they don’t want to know
- When Kam tells Jaja that she knows about Mama being pregnant, Jaja says: “We will take care of the baby; we
will protect him.”
- Kam knew that Jaja meant protection from Papa
- Jaja feels that Mama is going to have a baby boy
- Kam reveals that Papa drew up hers and Jaja’s schedules and wonders if he will do the same for the new baby
and also wonders when he will do it (right after the baby is born or when the baby is a toddler?)
- She reveals that Papa likes order
- One Saturday, when Papa and Jaja were playing chess, Papa heard a general with a strong Hause accent come
on the radio and announce that there had been a coup and that they had a new government
- Papa immediately called Ade Coker (the editor of Papa’s newspaper, the Standard)
- We learn that The Standard had written many stories about the cabinet ministers who stashed money in
foreign bank accounts, money meant for paying teachers’ salaries and building roads
- At the end of this chapter, we see that Kam is thirsty for Papa’s proudness of her – when Jaja says something
that Papa is happy with / proud of, Kam wishes that she was the one who said it
- When she finally does say something that she knows he would like, he reaches out to hold her hand
- She describes the feeling as though her mouth were “full of melting sugar”
- We see here that she often says things she knows her father would like to hear
